In the Ragamala paintings of the Ahmadnagar school, the women’s hairstyle is similar to that in the Lepakshi murals. What is this hairstyle?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Rolled up hair in a bun on the nape of the neck
Option (1) Long braided pigtails ending in a tassel — Incorrect. The pigtails belong to the modified northern costume of the Ahmadnagar women, not to Lepakshi.
Option (2) Braided hair with floral accessories — Incorrect. Floral accessories in the hair are not described for these paintings.
Option (3) Rolled up hair in a bun on the nape of the neck — Correct. The hair rolled up in a bun on the nape of the neck is similar to the Lepakshi murals.
Option (4) Covered by a long scarf passing round the head — Incorrect. The long scarf passes round the body below the hips, a southern fashion seen in the Lepakshi frescoes; it is not a hairstyle.
NCERT (2026-27): “Ahmadnagar School of Painting …These feminine dress, present in a series of Ragamala paintings, are the most striking and moving examples of the sixteenth century Deccan Schools of Painting. The women’s hair is rolled up in a bun on the nape of the neck, similar to the Lepakshi murals. The horizon, in the painting, disappears and is replaced by a neutral coloured ground patterned all over with small stylised plants, or occupied by symmetrical architectural domes over the archades. All these features, except the hairstyle, have traces of north India or Persia.” “Ahmadnagar School of Painting …The women in the paintings of Ahmadnagar wear a modified northern costume with choli (bodice) and long braided pigtails, ending in a tassel. Only a long scarf, passing round the body below the hips, is a southern fashion, which is seen in the Lepakshi frescoes.…” |